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Archaeology:
Permitting
In the State of Washington the excavation and removal of archaeological materials, and the excavation and removal of Native American human remains require a permit from this office under state law (RCW 27.44 and RCW 27.53).
The complete permit requirements
can be found in the Washington
Administrative Code 25-48-060. In addition to submitting a signed
and notarized application,
there are 18 potential sections for a complete permit application, depending
on the type of resource, nature of your excavation or recovery, and land
ownership. Over the years we have noticed that certain items tend to be
underreported or are missing from many permit applications. Tracking down
these deficiencies slows down the entire process.
Current Washington state law requires a permit from our office to remove or excavate any Native American human remains, burials, or to excavate any Native American archaeological site. A permit is also required to remove or excavate historic archaeological resources that are eligible or listed in the National Register of Historic Places or to recover any submerged historic aircraft or historic shipwrecks, or remove any archaeological object from such sites.
- Review your project or your client's project for any federal permits, funding or licensing. If there are federal permits, licenses, approvals, monies, or agencies involved in or regulating the project, your project must comply with Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act and its implementing regulations. You will need to contact the lead federal agency regarding site evaluation.
- Once a completed application is received by our office copies will be sent to affected Indian Tribes, the Association of Washington Archaeology, affected local governments, and landowners. To expedite your permit, we recommend you include not only a list of names and addresses of relevant persons and agencies for your permit review, but also a copy of the permit for each of these parties. If permit packages are ready to send, processing time in our office is considerably reduced.
- Take time to answer all information requirements found in WAC 25-48-060 1.
- Note items (i) and (k). The best way to provide evidence of your financial ability to complete the work, including laboratory and report writing, and your client's concurrence, is to submit a letter from the client stating they agree to finance your project to completion, which includes analysis and report writing. Another option is to submit a copy of your signed contract with your client with the dollar amounts redacted. If your client is not the landowner, don't forget an additional letter allowing your access onto their property.
- Provide clear maps and graphics. Be sure your graphics clearly show a datum and a north arrow
- We strongly encourage you to develop the application cooperatively with the concerned tribes, local government planning office, and local museums.
- For your overall project, please remember to plan for the time interval an application has for review and processing. The general time span for receiving a permit after submittal to our office is approximately 60 calendar days.
We look forward to working with you. Please feel free to call Stephenie Kramer, Assistant State Archaeologist, if you have any questions at (360) 586-3083 or email her at Stephenie.Kramer@dahp.wa.gov
Department of Archaeology & Historic Preservation
1063 South Capitol Way, Suite 106
Olympia WA 98501
Phone: 360-586-3065
Fax: 360-586-3067